thanks for joining us on news4 today. i'm erika gonzalez in for eun yang. i'm aaron gilchrist. we take a look at the nation's capitol. 36 frigid degrees if you're lucky at this hour. veronica johnson has our forecast. that's right. while we have the 30s, we have wind blowing. much less than yesterday, but what we have is bringing down the temperatures. the windchill readings. look at this. right now feeling like anywhere from 25 to 29 degrees out there. 25 in gaithersburg, montgomery county. 29 in fredericksburg. spotsylvania. plenty cold this morning. here's what to expect today. it's going to be dry. by 8:00 a.m., a partly cloudy sky, 28 to 33 degrees. then lunchtime today, some high clouds will be moving in. not bad outside. seasonable conditions when you consider that our average right now is at 40 degrees. today, 36 to 41. then when we get into the 4:00

and 5:00 hour, mostly cloudy, cool. you might say it's the calm before the storm. 37 to 42 degrees our temperature. that snow starts developing between 1:00 and 3:00 a.m. saturday morning. let's see if we've got any trouble on area roads. >> yes, we do, veronica. still dealing with the accident after 123. the left lane is shut down. let's take a live look at the accident. crews still on the scene. looks like the vehicle is on the tow truck. hopefully that will be out of the way soon. heavy delays before the prince william parkway. 25 minutes from -- >> thank you, mike. we move on to headlines now. new this morning, springfield interchange back open after a deadly crash on the beltway. three people died when a pickup truck slammed into a tractor-trailer on the ramp from the beltway to i-95. this happened about 7:00 last night. the cause of that crash still under investigation this morning. police closed the ramp as a precaution. the ramp is now back open. that happened about 2:00 this

morning. we've got breaking news now. russia's president vladimir putin signed a controversial bill banning americans from adopting russian children. it now goes into effect january 1. there are estimates that this ban could affect more than 1500 adoptions currently under way. the ban is widely viewed as retaliation on a recent u.s. law targeting russians who abuse human rights. for a closer look at russia's proposed adoption ban, tune in to the "today" show at 7:00 here on nbc4. congressional leaders will try again today to reach a deal to keep the country from plunging off the fiscal cliff. president obama hosting that meeting this afternoon at the white house. it will be the first time that he's met with congressional leaders since november 16th. they have just four days now to come to an agreement. democrats and republicans say that means a possible deal will likely extend tax cuts to middle class americans and postpone spending cuts scheduled to take effect. that means the contentious issue

will likely be debated sometime in the future. house lawmakers are preparing for an 11th hour deal. they're returning to washington for a rare sunday evening session. it's not clear what the house will do. house speaker john boehner still insists it's up to the senate to make the next move. iran's state television is reporting the country's navy started training drills in the strait of hormuz. iran is reportedly warned other ships to stay away from the site until after the new year. the state tv report says it includes warships, submarines and jet fighters. other countries are worried these tests are another step towards iran developing a nuclear weapon. the military world is mourning the death of the man known as stormin' norman. general schwarzkopf died yesterday from complications with pneumonia. he helped lead forces during the first gulf war that removed

saddam hussein from kuwait. a friend of his says schwarzkopf was in love with america and possessed with a sense of duty. he was 78 years old. schwarzkopf's death sparked reaction from many prominent american politicians and military leaders. former secretary of state general colin powell said "america lost a great patriot and a great soldier. his leadership not only inspired his troops but also inspired the nation." the man accused of walking into sandy hook elementary school in shenandoah county, virginia with a two by four will be in court. the incident happened last week in strasburg. 33-year-old christopher johnson wrote high-powered rifle on the board. police say he made general statements about school safety. nobody was hurt. johnson is now charged with disorderly conduct. today is the first day of the nation's gun show in chantilly. protesters plan to be out in full force. the group code pink is preparing

to demonstrate outside the dulles expo center. do you remember this? this was at that nra announcement. the group interrupted that conference last week and say they want stricter regulations when it comes to buying guns. >> rules on gun shows are very loose. and feeling is that this is not a sane way to protect you and me and our kids. >> despite the protests, gun stores say they've actually seen a huge increase in sales because many fear stricter regulations in light of the newtown school shooting. >> 6:05 is our time now. we're a little more than 48 hours away if one of the biggest redskins games in five years. the skins face off against the cowboys sunday night with a division title and spot in the playoffs on the line. looks like the team will be largely healthy for the game. offensive lineman tyler -- he sat out with a concussion last week. rg3's knee is holding up well

right now. they're riding a six-game winning streak heading into the matchup. metro will be open late to get everybody home from the game on sunday. trains will run for an extra hour. the last train running from franconia-springfield will leave the morgan boulevard station at 12:25 monday morning and the last train toward largo town center will leave at 1:30. you can watch the throwdown on nbc4. kickoff set for 8:20 and stay with news 4 before, during and after the game for full coverage and highlights. we're going to have our 6:00 news and then make sure it's chock full of special coverage before the game starts. tune in for that sunday night. >> i'm sure it's going to be a nailbiter. the chaotic scene that forced a virginia mall to close its doors early coming up. also ahead, hanging on for dear life. a daring rescue effort to save a man and a dog. more winter weath moving into the region. the impact on your weekend plans. i'm give you a hint.

maybe it's best to stay in. next with weather and tr

look at this. it's a rescue of a dog strand on the ice in michigan. the dog's owner called 9-1-1 to get help after his dog wandered on to the ice. before crews arrived, a man tried to go out there for himself on the ice and try and see if he could save the dog. he got stranded himself. eventually rescue crews reached the man and the pooch. animal control officials say the dog was cold but otherwise he was okay. >> ambulance waiting there to get them warmed up and send them on their way. >> i think everybody should be home this weekend with a cup of cocoa. >> definitely bundle up weather as we look outside right now. coming up on 6:11. time for weather and traffic on the 1s. meteorologist veronica johnson.

>> that's right. this whole weekend will be cold and the first part of the weekend will be nasty and wet and cold. at least it's dry. 32 degrees up to the north from frederick county into montgomery county. you folks in falls church, 34 degrees right now. green belt, your current temperature at 34 degrees. then you've got 28 culpeper toward fredericksburg, virginia. hometown forecast, we go to rockville, maryland. good morning to you folks. 32 by 7:00 a.m. this morning. then as we get toward the noon hour, 39. clouds will be on the increase. we'll have high clouds moving in today. we'll top out at about 41 to 44. watch the snow coming in at 2:00 and 3:00 a.m. tomorrow morning. we'll talk more about that. now traffic. >> thank you, veronica. news after 123. still activity on the left shoulder but the tow truck is gone. still slow traffic. looks like it is easing up a little bit.

25 minutes from the prince william parkway to the beltway on northbound 95 at 30 miles per hour. southbound 270 is worry-free towards the beltway. taking a live look at 118. no serious backups. southbound side heading toward the screen. aaron, erika? >> thank you, mike. still to come, put the power of our iphone into a smaller gadget. >> oh, boy, something else to add to the christmas list. also ahead, the world did not end. but the doomsday celebrations have left their mark on a mayan landmark. plus, the snow moved on. but wintry weather continues to impact holiday travelers up and down the east co

this morning, police are searching for the woman who pushed a man in front of a train that killed him. the woman was mumbling to herself and pacing on the subway platform witnesses say. before she shoved the man on to the tracks. so far, it does not appear the victim and suspect knew each other. there is no motive. this is the second time this month someone has been shoved on to the train tracks and killed in new york city. today begins a painful goodbye to two firefighters killed in a christmas eve ambush. people in the town of webster, new york, are getting ready to attend the wakes of those fallen firefighters who were shot as they responded to a fire. monday morning, volunteer firefighters mike chiapperini and tomasz coe zouk a were shot

by spengler. two other firefighters were wounded. funerals are set for sunday. a busy day at the mall turned into chaos in newport news, virginia. police were called to the mall about 7:00 last night for the report of a fight. they controlled the situation and left. but they had to come back less than an hour later. that time they found a mob of teenagers fighting. when officers stepped in, the teens targeted police officers. five teens were arrest ds and the mall closed early. virginia's attorney general plans to appeal a ruling that would free a former death row inmate ordered justin wolf freed within ten days because prosecutors didn't retry him within the 120 days the judge gave them when he tossed out wolfe conviction earlier this year. he spent more than a decade on death row for allegedly killing

his drug supplier. a developing story in north korea now. new satellite imagery suggests the country repaired damage at the facility. north korea can now conduct an atomic explosion at any time. the west is bracing for the possibility that if the north is punished for its long-range rocket launch, the country's next step could be a nuclear test. some believe north korea has enough plutonium for a handful of crude atomic bombs. suing owners of a japanese nuclear power plant that leaked radiation after last year's tsunami. the group which did humanitarian efforts after the quake is suing the tokyo electric power company for more than $200 million for exposure to radiation. the plaintiffs include eight troops, one of whom was pregnant at the time and her daughter. the suit claims the company knowingly caused permitted and

allowed misleading information about the condition of that plant. look out rolex. rumor has it apple is looking to get into the watch business. gilchrist is putting his pennies in the bank for it. business insider is reporting that apple is working with intel to develop an ios watch. it would feature a 1.5 inch screen and be bluetooth-enabled. apple could introduce the smart watch, hmm, in the next six months. >> where will it end? ford facing a class action lawsuit over gas mileage on some of its cars. the lawsuit says the automaker fudged the gas mileage for the 2013 hybrid and fusion hybrid models. both get 47 miles to the gallon supposedly. a recent study found it's as much as ten miles per gallon fewer than ford claims. recently, kia and hyundai also had to amend their mileage numbers after they admitted they

fudged the test process. the northeast is cleaning up this morning from the first major winter storm of the season. some areas saw as much as 18 inches of snow from the power storm. areas like buffalo, new york, and burlington, vermont haven't seen this much snow -- this is my question. isn't that a machine right there? why is he using the hand-held one. haven't seen this much snow since 2010. travel is treacherous in many areas. >> using muscle, that's all. >> those traveling by plane are hoping to get off the ground. more than 2,000 flights have been canceled this week leaving many stranded. the storm has caused delays at airports as far as l.a. so far, there aren't any delays or cancellation out of our major airports. be sure to call your airline before you head out the door. >> then there's us. our area getting ready for

another round of nasty winter weather as well. some are cleaning up from storms earlier this week. wind knocked this tree down on to some power lines. left about 1700 pepco customers without electricity. power has since been restored. here in silver spring, the wind is to blame for this. a tree smashed into a home on malibu drive. nobody was hurt there. but officials say the house is not livable anymore. fallen trees also a problem in northern virginia. this was the scene on georgetown park. a tree blocked traffic for a short time while police helped to clear the road. it was the same situation on burke station road in fairfax. this tree blocked that road yesterday morning. neighbors say this is becoming a more common occurrence in that area. something to be looking out for as we deal with these storms rolling through the area. >> most definitely. we haven't had what may be an inch of snow in the last, i think, two years since

carmageddon. >> it's going to be a 12-hour event for us. it's going to be in and out of here. it's not going to last throughout the entire day tomorrow because it will move in earlier. as far as what's going on right now. it's dry. we've got a few clouds up above. 38 degrees the temperature. enough wind where the windchills are lowered by 6 to 8 degrees in the area. our storm system is way, way out here. west of illinois. down around eastern texas. these two areas of low pressure kind of right converging over the mid-atlantic area and the ohio valley. it's going to be a big nor'easter for them with wind and snow. it's snow across the area. by 7:00, snow toward charles county and st. mary's county. that rain takes over and by 2:00, 3:00 it's out of here. in and out to where the snowfall that does occur may get wiped away by the rain. areas north will hold on to it longer. this is early sunday morning.

subfreezing conditions. could be icy on area roads by sunday morning. expecting between 1 and 3 inches of snowfall in the area. a quick look at the forecast. dry conditions, sbreezy. let's get another look at traffic with mike. >> thank you, veronica. good news after 123. still have activity on shoulder. the travel lanes are open and delays easing up. tow truck is on the scene. still activity, though. let's take a look at the speed. it's a 32-minute ride from quantico to the beltway at 49 miles an hour. aaron, erika? thank you, mike. they are the words and phrases that just make your eyes roll every time that you hear them. they just irritate you, like, whatever. the list of 2012's most annoying words. i think i just said two. also ahead, the world did not end on december 21st. but the doomsday celebrations at the mayan ruins are having a lasting impact.

in case you weren't sure, the world did not end last friday, but it may look like the

apocalypse in guatemala. tourists got a little too rowdy during an end of the world party and damaged the temple. we still don't know the extent of the damage but some of it can't be fixed. more than 7,000 people visited the temple last friday to watch mayan priests hold a ceremony to welcome a "new era." >> whatever is apparently real a noiing to people. it topped the most annoying words and phrases in conversation for the fourth straight year. like took the second spot with 21%. the runners-up including twitter verse and gotcha. there were more than 1200 adults questioned. the results differed by age. people younger by 45 were especially annoyed by the word "like." "you know" offended people 45 years old and up. >> someone on facebook said in like, yeah, no.

i use that a lot, no. >> yeah, no. >> we're tracking a developing story now. more serious news. the threat that has an american embassy workers evacuating from an african country at this hour. telling their side of the story. why the u.s. park service says they terminated the lease of a popular riverfront business. plus, the unexpected arrival on metro that caused some red line passengers to be late getting home. it's 6:27. storms forming to the west of us could dampen our weekend plans. wh

their decisions sparked anger. the park service is explaining why it terminated the lease of a -- i'm aaron gilchrist. i'm erika gonzalez in for eun yang. a cool but pleasant start to the day as you get ready to head out the door. winds not whipping as much as yesterday. your plans could end up getting soaked as more winter weather moves in. veronica johnson is outside on

the weather deck with more on what we could see this weekend. hey, v.j.? >> not bad out here. i'm looking at the moon off in the distance shrouded by some clouds. of course, we'll be doing frequent updates throughout the morning on saturday. some of you may be extra prepared because i'm going to be sending these out. these are thermometers and windchill charts on the back. the first four new followers on twitter that i get, you will have one of these. they work great as a zipper pull. the first four new followers that i get. but there again, little thermometers and windchill charts. let's talk about the storm system. we'll see snow developing between 1:00 and 3:00 a.m. saturday morningment areas around d.c. south and east will see it start to mix with rain between 7:00 and 9:00 a.m. then the storm system is going to wrap up fairly quickly between 2:00 and 3:00 p.m. blowing on east and out of here. here's a quick look at your

neighborhood. frederick, maryland, it's mostly snow for you. olney, light accumulations, 2 mchs for you. rain, d.c. -- we'll talk more about that coming up. right now we'll look at the roads are mike cremedas. >> still a little bit of activity on the left shoulder but the delays eased up. there's the last police car. should be out of the way soon. 31 minutes quantico. >> lane shut down with a disabled vehicle. the access lane to the beltway. not a backup on the inner loop. but a slowdown georgia avenue. you can see the flashing lights there on the right side of your screen. aaron, erika? >> thank you, mike. now let's go to melissa mollet with breaking news. >> syrian warplanes are raiding a damascus province. one civilian killed, dozens hurt and homes destroyed. on thursday, at least 142 people were killed.

45,000 killed since the uprising started in march of last year. at the live desk, melissa mollet. u.s. diplomats are being told to get out of an african country because of rising violence there. the state department is shutting the doors on its embassy in the central african republic. this as rebels seize at least ten towns in the northern part of the country. leaving the capital city in fear of an attack. 40 were reportedly flown to kenya. secretary of state hillary clinton will return to work next week after being sidelined by illness for the past few weeks. she's kept a low profile after suffering from a stomach virus and then a concussion she reportedly sustained after fainting. she had to cancel an overseas trip as well as testimony before congress about the attack on the u.s. consulate in benghazi, libya. clinton is preparing to step down as secretary of state in the coming weeks. this morning, two of the three men accused of brutally

beating a capitol hill man this summer will be in court. police say tommy branch and sunny kuti attacked and robbed thomas maslin in august. maslin suffered a traumatic brain injury and was in a coma nearly two months. the third suspect, michael moore, waived his right to a hearing. this morning, four children, one as yun as 12, face charges for carjacking. the virginia couple was outside their home in manassas wednesday night when the group held them at gunpoint. when police caught up to them, a 13-year-old girl was behind wheel. the suspects tried to get away leaving the minivan in drive which sent the van into a pillar in a mcdonald's drive through. the group took the couple's rent money and a new tablet computer just purchased for their daughter. 6:34 right now. a malfunctioning furn mass is to blame for a massive fire that destroyed an apartment complex earlier this week. now, we're hearing the 91 calls

for help as people watched the fire race through the building. >> i'm down the street but i can see it from here. there's smoke everywhere. >> do you know what floor it's on in. >> it looks like it started on the first floor but it's to the third floor now. >> you said you see a window on fire, right? >> yeah. it's going to the next one and burning the roof. >> window on fire on first floor. now it's going all the way up to the roof? >> yeah, it's like it's on the roof now. >> the fire caused about $250,000 in damage to the franklin park apartments in green belt. the red cross helping the 30 families displaced by that fire. the national park service is explaining why it tried to evict jack owes boathouse from a yorj town waterfront. the month to month lease is not in the name of the current owner it says. paul sim kins owns and runs the boathouse which has operated under the same lease since 1982. he took over when his friend and partner frank baxter died three

years ago. the park service says it was reviewing the contract when it realized the name wasn't on it. it put the eviction on hold. plans to move the redskins training camp to richmond are good to go. richmond city council just approved an agreement to build a training camp facility. construction could begin as early as next week. that facility would include two football field, a fieldhouse, an area for fans and a drill field. it could be ready in time for next summer's training camp. it looks like hurricane sandy left a mark on d.c. metro, at least when it comes to ridership. metro is saying ridership fell below expectations in the month of october. losing an estimated 2.4 million trips because of sandy. even though the storm didn't damage the transit system, service was canceled or restricted for a few days at the end of the month. it comes after three straight month of decreased ridership on

metro. it is 6:36 right now. the "today" show is coming up here at the top of the hour. want to get a preview of what they're working on this morning. for that we turn to savannah guthrie in new york. good morning, savannah. >> that was an exciting pause right there. good morning to you. coming up on a friday morning on "today," yet another winter storm hitting parts of the south this morning. it will bring snow from washington, d.c. to boston of the we'll tell twhau to expect. also ahead, heartbreaking news for families. russia's president signs a bill banning adoption to the u.s. you'll know about the fiscal cliff. but have you heard about the mill i can cliff. why prices could soar to $8 a gallon. we take a look at how we covered the events and people who made headlines in 2012 all when we get started on "today." for now, back to you in washington, aaron. savannah. thank you. we'll see you in a bit.

delays happen on the metro. a woman went into labor on the red line. she didn't actually give birth at the gallery place stop. metro stopped the train to wait for an ambulance. medics got her to the hospital in time to deliver her baby. happy birthday to the new baby. >> yes. and no crazy story to tell years from now. >> thankful. all right. >> it is 6:38 right now. we may have lost dick clark this year, but his legacy will be living on in times square this new year's eve. >> the tributes to the former military leader affectionately known as stormin' norman. the preparations under way in maryland and virginia this morning as highway crews brace for winter weather. >> we're enjoying a cool but dry start to the morning. when to expect to see

a big honor for a man whose name is synonymous with new year's eve. dick clark's name was installed in the ball that will drop on new year's eve. dick clark counted down for years. he passed away this past april. his wife was on hand for yesterday's beautiful tribute. going to be weird not to see him. i bet they'll do a video tribute for the program. >> it will be really special. can't wait to see that. let's get a look at the forecast. chilly to start. snow is on the way. veronica? >> today is the outside day. tomorrow your inside day. it's going to be a bit messy with snow and rain expected around the area. let go back to this. the windchill temperatures still a little bit of a wind out there. just came in from outside. windchills currently in the mid and upper 20s. as far as the air temp, right now in the low 30s.

ashton up to 36 degrees by noontime. you'll probably top out just under 40 degrees. then again, we're talking about the snow starting. watch this at 2:00 to 3:00 a.m. tomorrow morning. more on that coming up in ten minutes. right now, first 4 traffic. >> thank you, veronica. good news, northbound 95 after 123. all travel lanes are open and delays eased up. at georgia avenue, disabled vehicle blocked the access lane to 495. not causing a backup on the inner loop. but a slowdown on georgia. southbound 355 at cedar lane. left lane getting by the water main break. we're seeing delays in the surrounding area. aaron? >> thank you, mike. the loudoun county sheriff's office investigating a deadly shooting that happened at 7:00 last night in sterling. deputies found the victim shot to death near great trail terrace and trail run terrace. they believe the man was targeted. anyone with information is asked to call the sheriff's office. today the man accused of walking into sandy hook elementary school in shenandoah

county, virginia, with a two by four is going to be in court. the incident happened in strasburg last week. christopher johnson wrote high-powered rifle on the board. he made general statements about school safety. nobody was hurt. johnson, though, is now being charged with disorderly conduct. more than 200 teep teachers in utah spent the day in the classroom learning how to handle a gun. that class usually gets 40 to 50 participants. the lesson included gun safety, self-defense tactics and nonfirearm options for protection. advocates say teachers could stop school shootings like the one at sandy hook elementary if they carry concealed firearms. utah is one of two states that allows individuals with concealed weapons permits to carry their guns in schools. kansas the other state. today protesters will be out in full force at the nation's gun show in chantilly. the social group, code pink, is

preparing to demonstrate outside the dulles expo center today. the group interrupted the nra news conference last week with signs and banners. they want stricter regulations when it comes to buying guns. members don't like how guns are more and more acceptable in public places. >> when you're in union station and you come down the escalator and there's a few police there with guns slung over and -- i hate that. >> gun store owners say the protest probably won't make a difference. in fact, the stores have seen an increase in sales because many fear stricter regulations in light of the newtown school shooting. all right. let's go to melissa mollet with breaking news at the live desk. >> brand new surveillance video we got from new york police. this is just into the newsroom. take a look. video of the woman police say pushed a man to his death in front of a subway train in new york thursday night. it is a bit hard to sigh.

but it shows the woman running from the platform in queens. witnesses say she had been following the man closely and mumbling to herself and then shoved him as the train pulled into the platform. the second time this month, someone has been shoved to their death on subway tracks. she's described as heavy-set and in her 20s. at the live desk, melissa mollet, news 4. more breaking news. russia's president, vladimir putin signed a controversial bill that bans americans from adopting russian children. it goes into effect on january 1st. there are estimates that this ban could affect more than 1500 adoptions that are under way right now. the ban widely viewed as retaliation for a recent u.s. law that targets russians who abuse human rights. a closer look at the proposed adoption ban right after this broadcast on the "today" show beginning at 7:00. new this morning, a report from iran state television says the navy of the country has reportedly started training drills in the strait of hormuz. that area sees 20% of the oil

pass through it in the nation. the programs include warships, submarines and jet fighters. iran has reportedly warned other ships to stay away from the site until after the new year. other countries are worried that the tests are another step towards iran developing a nuclear weapon. 13 before the top of the hour now. the army general who helped force saddam hussein out of kuwait has died. general norman schwarzkopf died yesterday from complications with pneumonia. the man known at stormin' norman successfully executed the first gulf war and the former head of central command at macdill air force base in florida. a close friend said schwarzkopf was possessed by a sense of duty and was a true patriot. norman schwarzkopf was 78 years old. former president george h.w. bush released a statement saying "general schwarzkopf epitomized the duty, service, country creed that has defended our freedom. more than that, he was a good and decent man and a dear

friend." bush made that statement as he continues to recover in intensive care. a spokesperson for the bush family says the former president will probably be in the hospital for a while. but promises that he's in good hands. the 88-year-old has been in the houston hospital since november 23rd. his condition worsened this week when he suffered a series of complications from bronchitis. this is a crucial day in the effort to keep the country from going off the fiscal cliff. president obama meets with congressional leaders this afternoon. democrats and republicans both say a deal at this point would probably extend bush era tax cuts for most persons and raise taxes on the country's top earners. it could include an extension of long-term unemployment benefits, spending cuts would also be postponed. house speaker john boehner will be at today's meeting. he says the house will convene for a rare sunday evening session. eric cantor says the house could be in session until january 2nd.

that's the day before the new congress is sworn in. boehner, meanwhile, still maintains that it's up to the senate at this point to make the first move. going over the fiscal cliff could have a huge impact on the local economy. thousands of people could lose their jobs, especially federal employees and government contractors. the defense industry could face billions of dollars in cuts. >> i represent the third largest number of federal employees and probably the largest single number of federal contractors. so that federal nexus is really important to our economy. we immediate to end the uncertainty. >> economists say it is possible, though, this new terminology to step over if you will the cliff. that means lawmakers will reach some kind of a deal a few weeks after the new year begins. retailers are bracing for more bad news as thousands of workers at u.s. ports are preparing to strike.

jackie deangelis live with that story and more. jackie? >> good morning, aaron. time is running short to avoid a possible strike this weekend at more than a dozen east and gulf coast ports stretching from maine to texas. more than 14,000 long shore men could walk off the job when their contract expires tomorrow in a long-running pay dispute with shippers. the biggest sticking point is over container royalties which are paid to union workers based on cargo weight. the strike could affect u.s. exports and hurt retailers waiting for shipments of spring merchandise. meantime, millions of homeowners in foreclosure in 2009 and 2010 could miss out on the chance to have their cases reviewed for possible errors and compensation. also, they don't act by monday, that's the deadline for people to request a free review as part of a settlement reached last year between u.s. regulators and 14 mortgage companies. the deadline has been extended three times due to poor response already. more than 4 million notices were mailed out, but only 356,000

homeowners have asked for a review. you can submit a request at independentforeclosure review.com. back to you. thank you to jackie deangelis at cnbc. >> good news for dog owners in montgomery county. you soon no longer need to pay fees to use the county's dog parks. montgomery county says that it will stop collecting a $40 a year permit fee. the fee was first imposed two years ago to make up for budget cuts. it appears to have driven people away from the parks. the county says it's going to find a new way to come up with that money. when maryland lawmakers reconvene next month, they will serve up some major -- there should be a state sandwich. according to the washington post, on january 9th it will make the soft shell crab sandwich, maryland's official sandwich. it would help the state restaurant business and state fishermen. anybody who has had crab

cakes in maryland would agree with this move. >> wholeheartedly. >> crab cake benedict this morning? >> okay. >> veronica johnson here with the weather. it's going to be cold this weekend. that's an understatement, right? >> it is an understatement. so sloppy too on saturday. good day to wake up late and make the breakfast, right? hang out in front of the tv. we'll be doing updates throughout the morning on saturday. right now, around here, it is dry. we have 38 degrees for a temperature. that wind still blowing out of the west at 12 miles per hour. we're going to see that generally today about 5 to 15 miles per hour winds. by noontime, we rise up to 41 degrees. you'll see clouds increasing. then by 5:00. 42 your temperature. we'll start cooling very quickly after 7:00. we'll be dropping into the 30s. that really is the setup then for the storm system coming into the area. it's after midnight when we're, again, cold and in the 30s when

the snow pushes in. here we are at 4:00 a.m. tomorrow morning. snow continues to take over. it's really pretty snowy across much of the area. watch what happens after that. the rain tarstarts to take over. north around gaithersburg. the system is out of here by 3:00, 4:00 tomorrow. cold for the early part of the day on sunday. could be icy on sunday morning. 1 to 3 inches expected here. frederick, areas in westminster, 2 to 4 inches of snowfall up to our north. little quick look at your forecast the next couple of days. 30s this weekend. new year's eve at 32 to 42 for a high. mike in. >> thank you. the water main break at cedar lane, left lane getting by. causing a delay in each direction. let's take a look at the map. we can see that thankfully, it's not causing a serious backup on 270. inner loop at georgia avenue, right access lane to 495 blocked with a disabled vehicle. no delay on the inner loop. taking a live look there. it is causing slow traffic on georgia avenue.

worry-free on metro. marc trains and the virginia railway express. thank you, mike. new this morning, the springfield interchange back open. three people died when a truck slammed into a tractor-trailer on the ramp from the beltway to i-95 about 7:00 last night. the cause of that crash still under investigation. police closed the ramp as a precaution. the ramp back open now. it happened about 2:00 this morning. d.c., maryland and virginia are getting ready for what's shaping up to be a snowy, slushy weekend. in maryland, 2500 trucks will salt the roads today and prepare the plows for tomorrow morning. vdot will make their plans today for how they'll respond to the impending storm. in the district, they get to break in new equipment for the first time this winter. officials say to stay off the road tomorrow morning unless you have to go out as conditions could get dangerous. be careful for that.

grab the skis and the snowboards. it's time to hit the slopes, folks. the winter storm and the cold temperatures are helping area ski resorts to open this weekend. white tail resort in pennsylvania opens for the season this morning. for now, they will have four slopes operating. two other nearby resorts, round top and liberty, they open tomorrow. wisp in western maryland is also open with about eight runs open. redskins fans, get ready for one of the biggest games in five years. skins face off against the cowboys. looks like the team will be largely healthy for the game. he sat out last week with a concussion. rg3's knee seems to be doing well now. the redskins riding a six-game winning streak heading into the matchup. metro will stay open late to get everybody home off the game. trains will run for an extra hour on sunday. the last blue line train to

franconia-springfield leaving the station at 12:25 monday morning and the last train headed toward largo town center will leave at 1:30 monday morning. remember, you can watch the throwdown here on nbc4. kickoff set for 8:20 on sunday. watch before, during and after the game for team coverage and highlights of this monster matchup. >> absolutely. >> anybody out there will be like this. bring extra gear to stay warm on sunday. it's not only going to be cold on sunday, it will be breezy. good field conditions. as far as that storm on saturday, 1 to 3 inches generally across the area. more up around the border, pennsylvania, maryland border 44 for a high today. 39 tomorrow. 38 for a high on sunday. new year's eve, we drop to the 30s. the high for new year's day, 40 degrees with yet another storm moving in on new year's day that

could bring us a little more snow. every couple of days. thanks, veronica. that is news4 today. thank you for starting your day with us. >> the "today" show is next. we'll be back in 25 minutes with weather, traffic and breaking news. have a great day. see you back here on monday.